Oh, Death
by kirenlocke
Summary: Bella is Death incarnate, she ferries souls to the other side and because of this curse, she is virtually alone in the world. That is, until she crosses paths with the beautiful undead. AU.


**Summary:** Bella is Death incarnate, she ferries souls to the other side and because of this curse, she is virtually alone in the world. That is, until she crosses paths with the beautiful undead. Supernatural AU.

**Oh, Death.**

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><p><strong>Chapter 1<strong>

My name is Isabella Swan and I am fear, I am danger, I am hopelessness and I am the inescapable. I am the unknown and the unwanted. Sound familiar? It should, because you've thought of me, in your nightmares when you hand over control to your unconscious self. When you're walking alone at night and you suddenly hear a second pair of footsteps and you heart beat starts to pound in your ears. That inexplicable chill on the back of your neck, the goosebumps on your arms. The sorrow when you think of everyone you've lost to illness, accidents... fate.

My name is Isabella and I am Death.

I guide lost souls to their ends, it is my duty and my curse. My inheritance as a generation of Swan, a powerful Witch of the time named Marcus had condemned my ancestors and their future offspring to this fate a thousand years ago after Xavier Jonathan Swan committed murder against Marcus's brother. My father did not inherit the gene, it came straight to me after the death of my Grandfather. At the age of seventeen I woke up Iin the middle of the night to a familiar elderly man rocking in my chair with the numbers 00:00:00 shining above his head. The code only appeared on one of us at the final moments of life. That was how I simultaneously discovered my new powers and learned of my grandfathers death. I later learned that while his death certificate claimed he died at sixty-one, he had lived one hundred and forty-two years. His mother before him died at thirty-four of suicide, she couldn't take it anymore. The suicide rate was high in our family.

One would think that with every soul I guided to the other side, I would make peace with the concept of my own impending doom. Let me assure you, I never have. Most souls beg and scream and threaten and barter until they have no choice but to pass on. Even then, some do not pass over. Some choose to remain trapped out of hatred or terror.

It's human instinct to fight tooth and nail to survive when you can't make peace with the fact that it is your time. It was more common among the young, those who drove just a little too fast or shot up one too many times.

Live fast, die young. That was their motto until they were pretty corpses laying six feet under.

Every passing soul yanked on the anchor dragging me back into oblivion, following my passengers. Of course I did not guide every soul, the parade of the dead would be never-ending. I guide those whom possess some measure of supernatural capabilities in addition to those in my sect, which would now be Washington.

Those are usually the ones who need a dose of reality, those who are holding on too tight to a world in which they no longer belonged. I pitied them. But who I pitied the most were those who could not travel to the other side, whether it was of their own doing, unfinished business or any list of reasons, souls wandered the earth, only making themselves known when they wanted to or were forced into appearing. One thing they had in common, they were nothing if not difficult. Everyone thinks they're fearless until they see what real fear is.

It's why I became such a careful methodical person. I would not succumb because of some freak accident. I would not succumb to the terrors I guided to their next life, to heaven, to hell or total oblivion. Whatever lay on the other side, I never plan on finding out. I don't take risks, I don't make mistakes and I will never have to fear the clutches of the beyond. It keeps me alive and in that, I take comfort.

Being the keeper of souls was ultimately draining so I made a concerted effort to separate the darkest parts of her from who I am among the living. After all I am still a teenage girl on her way to UDub and I intended on enjoying the experience, to some effect. I had actually been living in Florida for most of my life but I chose the University of Washington for Charlie. He had a heart attack only months before and it was the push I needed to move back as close to home as I could so I could be there when I needed to. I had Sue Clearwater checking in on him often, but one perk of my "spidey senses" told me he wasn't in the danger zone when I traced his aura. He graciously elected to drive me to my campus dorm for the start of my first semester.

"It's six on a Friday night how are the streets so deserted." My eyes widened. "Charlie...are they all Mormons? Is this town a cult?"

"Ha-ha. There's some concert going on up in Port Angeles, those kids are Seattle's problem now. And that means I'm free to help you. I don't think Mormons and cults are all the same thing.

"Every religion is a cult."

"So I'm guessing you won't be going to Church on Sundays?"

"Let's put it this way, the main difference between cults and religions are that religions have more significant followings. If enough people believed in the Sandman, Sandmanism would be just as accepted as a valid religion."

"They'd probably keep you away from those church doors with a fifty foot pole." He chuckled to himself.

"To be honest, I thought someone in your... supernatural position would be more of a believer in a higher power than anybody, your grandfather was." His tone was a bit gruff by the end, perhaps not having meant to bring up a subject that required an actual exchange of feelings.

I rolled my eyes and hummed as we pulled into parking lot. That was where I got it from, I am most definitely my father's daughter.

He kicked the door open and climbed the stairs with me and the majority of my bags in tow.

"It's room 204..." We scanned the doors as we walked. 211...210...

"So the first day of the rest of your life, are you excited?"

It was like he was trying to cram years worth of conversation into one night. It was actually kind of sweet in a Charlie way.

"Sure, maybe Ill recognize someone from one of my visits to Forks, any of those townies make it to graduation?

"Watch it I'm one of those townies, missy!" He set my bags down at the door.

"Yes sir." I saluted. "You better get going before it gets too dark."

"You're right. Just...Bella try to put it behind you for a while. You've been free for a weeks now, enjoy it while it lasts. You deserve a break."

My life had been death-free for some time and I was just a bit too much of a cycnic to enjoy it for long.

"Good night...Dad. I'll call you soon." He stuck his hands in his pockets abashedly. And I laughed, I don't think I'd ever seen him hug anyone in his life under any circumstances, of course I had my own reasons for keeping him at arm's length.

I don't have friends. How can I when the very touch of my fingers can speed up the clock on the life of a poor unsuspecting soul? They wouldn't even know it but their organs will have aged ten years with an innocent grazing of my fingers against their arm.

I entered the room and was greeted by my new roommate Angela.

The next morning was a bright and sunny one, unfortunately I didn't get to enjoy it because I was in a rush. Sure it was just an Intro lecture but I wanted the full experience. Draining a cup of black coffee, I was off across campus. As early as it was, the grounds were surprisingly sparse of life.

Suddenly my gait came to a grinding halt.

Have you ever been left struck at the sight of another person and you can't bare to see them disappear along with the chance of ever seeing them again? I'd just had that once in a lifetime moment fast walking down the paved path of the Quad.

He leaned against the railing by himself. The attraction was instantaneous. In that moment it was like the clouds had parted and I saw light for the very first time. He was extraordinary. A thick bronze head of hair, a pale complexion, a strong jaw and the most piercing set of tawny eyes that were set on me. His strong arms held him steady against the rails. Simply sinful. He was certainly a sight to behold. And he smiled at me when I stared for a beat ...or ten, too long.

"Damn." He murmured in quiet appreciation and I realized we had been locked in our staredown for an entire minute and neither of us had noticed, we were just lost in eachother. Strange.

The smile creeping up on my face faltered suddenly. The blush drained from my cheeks and his brows came together in confusion. He pitched forward but I stumbled back, my breathing elevating by the second.

What struck me most about him wasn't his pearly white smile or the way his grin turned bashful when my eyes lingered too long. It was the dull light shining above his head like a halo, above the devilish appearence of horns his ruffled licks of hair created. While every man woman and child had a timer ticking on silently and ominously over their heads, this boy was a bit different, there was no ticking. All I saw was...

00:00:00

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><p><strong>AN Please Read.**

**1. If you've never heard "Oh Death" as seen on Supernatural, I advise you to YT the clip/song by Jen Titus - specifically the Supernatural scene. It's ridiculously badass. I'm not the type to make soundtracks for stories but this is where my title came from and partly what sparked my idea for this short story.**

**2. Your responses could shift the tone of my story. This is a spur of the moment post after finding it in my PC so I'll post when inspiration/motivation strikes. Reviews are part of the motivation!**


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